What One Thing is Changing the Future of Single-Family Home Spaces?

Ranches, duplexes, three-story homes, condos: How you live depends on what you want and need. And the demands of our families continue to change single-family homes. Here’s what we’re doing as families—and how the future of the single-family home is changing to adapt.

We’re getting outside.

We don’t want the same thing as our neighbors.

What your neighbors like may not be what you like, or even want. At the Sisters Cove development, the lake is a shared focal point—but beyond that, individual houses shift in color and layout as well as placement of outdoor spaces.

We want to be reminded of our outside spaces, even when we’re inside.

In the past, many indoor rooms were closed off from interior rooms, but no more. Today, families want to solidify that connection, with big windows and even more doors, as in the Park Square Homes Dellagio.

We will work around the lot.

Replacing mature trees, replicating a unique view: The places we choose to build our homes come with their own unique characteristics. Today’s homeowners are more respectful of what’s in place and what can’t be built. To that end, they’ll adjust the placement and design of a single-family home, as with the Phillip Jennings Custom Private Residence, that worked around mature trees and an odd-size lot.

Courtyards are in.

There are plenty of ways to create active connections with outdoor spaces; some are the next evolution of the front porch or a modern-day update of historic elements, such as plazas. The latter is readily apparent in the Aracena development in the Calliandra Estates. Streetside plazas serve a dual purpose for these houses—drawing people into the house and creating a courtyard that connects interior rooms to the outside, too.

Our homes are our entertaining focus.

A grill and a picnic table used to be the best of our single-family home outdoor spaces—but no more. There are flexible spaces that move from inside to out, as well as tricked-out extras outside—kitchens, expansive pools, and a variety of seating areas, such as the Blackstone at Vistancia development.

Our exterior facades seamlessly integrate with outdoor settings.

Many people are choosing a place to live because it allows them to pursue hobbies or lifestyles—say, year-round outdoor time. They want their homes to be something that reinforces their love of place, which means a more thoughtful selection of materials, colors, and textures in order to enhance visual interest. That’s on display at the Toll Brothers Los Saguaros at Dove Mountain, for homes reflective of their desert beautiful settings.

We’re rediscovering our front yards as living spaces, too.

Front porches have cycled in and out of favor for homeowners—and they’re definitely back in. For starters, they’re a way for families to capture more outdoor space than ever. Secondly, they’re a way for homeowners to connect with a neighborhood, as with the casual seating area in the Toll Brothers Reserve at Tranquil Trail.

Formality? No thanks.

Open living plans are here to stay, but what’s gone by the wayside are formal spaces that are off-limits except on big holidays and events. Instead, we’re using every square inch—kitchen into island into dining space into living area—and finally into outdoors—as in the Toll Brothers Los Saguaros at Dove Mountain, Montilla.